Daryl R. Cox

Munising

Daryl R. Cox, age 73, of Munising, died unexpectedly, Sunday, October 23, 2022 at Munising Memorial Hospital following a lengthy illness.  He was born on August 27, 1949 in Munising to the late William and Dorothy (Steinhoff) Cox, Jr.  Daryl graduated from Wm. G. Mather High School in 1967 where he excelled in basketball and was the quarterback for the Mustangs.  He worked at Hartho for 16 years where he was a lumber inspector before getting hired at Kimberly Clark in 1987.  Daryl worked in the machine room and then moved to the specialties department and retired as a rewinder operator in 2012.  Daryl married the love of his life and best friend Laurie “Sis” Spaulding on September 2, 1989.  The only thing they ever fought about was the way the wind was blowing the flag and Karl Bohnak’s weather forecasts.  Daryl was an avid outdoorsman who loved to hunt and fish.  He would plan his vacation around the steelhead run, and you would find him in his waders at the mouth of the Anna River, Miners River, and Bay Furnace catching fish.  It carried into the winter where he loved ice fishing on Munising Bay catching whitefish, coho, trophy brown trout, and even a lantern and radio.  Daryl and Sis loved to cruise, whether it was on a snowmobile, their side-by-side through the Hiawatha National Forest, or around Grand Island on their pontoon.  He was always prepared for any situation and kept his supplies stocked and organized.  Camp on Spot Lake was a special place for Daryl.  It gave he and Sis a chance to get away or a place for family and friends to come together.  It was at Spot Lake that they started attending all the festivities at Blough’s Burger Barn especially the Halloween Party Daryl looked forward to.  One of his favorite times of year was Bird Camp, this week was filled with feathers, food, friends, fun, and bottle of “Spot Lake Water”.  Daryl loved cheering on his Dallas Cowboys, St. Norbert’s Green Knights, and the Munising Mustangs.  He loved cheering on his kids and then nieces and nephews as they played for the orange and black.  He was so grateful when the technology came with the NFHS network to be able to follow the teams even when he wasn’t able to get to the game.  Daryl had many great friends and enjoyed his times at the Moose Lodge, visits on his front porch with the coffee klatch, and huddled around the bonfire with his crew from the “Hood”.  Daryl loved his family with all his heart and was happiest when he had them nearby.

He is survived by his wife – Sis Cox of Munising; son – Eric (Shannon) Cox of Cummings, GA; grandchildren – Dylan, Alex, Paul Daryl, and Ryan; siblings – Judy (Tim) Spaulding, Laurie Cadwell, JoAnn (Hans) Baij, and Rhonda (Ed Juranek) Cox; sisters-in-law – Shelly (Mike) Cox and Kelly (John) Corey; numerous nieces, nephews, and cousins; and dog – Padfoot.  Daryl was preceded in death by his parents Bill and Dorothy; daughter – Jessica Feliciano; son – Brandon Spaulding; brother – Bill Cox; and mother and father-in-law Nancy and Gene Spaulding.

Visitation will be on Tuesday, November 1, 2022 at the Bowerman Funeral Home from 1:00 until 4:00 p.m.  Pastor Sandra Kolder will conduct Daryl’s memorial service at 4:00 p.m.  Interment will follow at Maple Grove Cemetery.  For those able to attend services, please wear something in Daryl’s favorite color, camouflage.

Daryl’s family would like to give a special thank you to the caring nurses and doctors at Munising Memorial Hospital for their compassionate and quality care they gave.